For those you of who read this journal often, it will not have escaped you that I may be - just a teensy bit - a bit of a Donna fan.

Well, don't all protest at once.

Okay. Big Donna fan. Huge Donna fan. Thinking of installing a Donna-shrine until the Donna Doctor Who Novels are released fan.

Well (prepare yourself - this will come as a shock) I'm also a Catherine Tate fan.  

I didn't start out that way. I'm not a Sketch-Show person, so my pre-Who knowledge of her was a national catchphrase and the brief clips I'd seen while waiting for Mock the Week or similar to come on.

Then she entered my life in a big way on Christmas day (and for about five seconds before that during the Doomsday ep) and I was hooked. When I found out she was a clasically trained actress, I wanted more, and looked up Sixty-Six (a very good film) which also featured her. 

The difference was that where 66 had largely positive reviews, Mrs. Ratcliffe's Revolution did not. At best they were 'meh' and at worst 'dire'. But it's a long wait between Saturdays, and I needed a fix. So I rented the DVD. 

And I'm very glad I did. It was very similar to 66 in a lot of ways (and not only the era) but where 66 was a family story, this was not only a family story - but an action story as well.

Set during the throes of WWII, MRS RATCLIFFE'S REVOLUTION tells the story of a family from Yorkshire who move to East Germany in pursuit of the communist dream. There, they discover a nightmare of rationing, censorship, paranoia, and bureaucratic oppression--a far cry from the Marxist utopia they had envisaged. Mr Ratcliffe, head of the local Communist Party, pushes forward to realise his family's dreams, while his two young daughters vie for his attention--one by rebelling against his political beliefs; the other by adopting an increasingly pro-Stalinist stance. Throughout all this, Mrs Ratcliffe has remained relatively silent, suppressing any doubts she may have had for the sake of familial harmony. But the time has come for her to take a stand and reign in her dysfunctional family. Based on true events, this black comedy shows what happens when reality gets in the way of idealism. 

The above is wrong - it's not WW2 - it's the 60s. But overall the film brought across a great sense of paranoia, fear, and opression, and managed to not only find comedy in it but emotion as well.

And CT not only stole it, she OWNED it. her performance was rollicking. Below is a change to the usual Donna watch - today it's Mrs. Radcliffe watch:

Mrs. Radcliffe Watch
The part in the car where she goes from comforting the boy to explaining why she's unhappy is emotionally drianing and something I think of lot of housewives suffer from. 
Her outfits are great.
The part where she goes into her house to find a party going on inside and she's all sweaty and embarasses her husband and spills her drink is so realistic and human.
Too many great moments to list - but I think her pointing a gun, then stopping to blow dust off it and point it again was the highlight (see below). And also her having to flee from guards after helping someone escape (see below) and then stopping and running to get her bag out of the backseat. 
Other great acting moment is her reaction to finding out her husband kissed someone else - CT much be such a good crier they get her to do it in everything now. 





Random Thoughts
Spent whole thing wondering what I'd seen Resistance Lady in until I remembered she was the spit of a family friend.
Both of the child actors were fantastic - the teen one even managed not to be annoying after a while.

Things I Liked
Just about everything...

Things I Didn't
No resolution - do they go back home? What?
You are not telling me that lad fooled guards into thinking he was a woman.
Also couldn't they have just shot at the hot air balloon at the end. On second thoughts - would that have blown it up?
 
So GO RENT and ignore those bad reviews!